Safety initiatives, medication issues focus of Welfare and Safety Summit

Safety initiatives, medication issues focus of Welfare and

Safety Summit

The fourth Welfare and Safety of the Racehorse Summit concluded Wednesday

morning in Lexington, Kentucky, as racing commission representatives discussed

the implementation of safety initiatives and four other speakers made

presentations on Thoroughbred aftercare.

Like the three previous summits, held in October 2006, March 2008 and June

2010, the summit was underwritten and coordinated by The Jockey Club and

Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation and hosted by Keeneland Association.

The two-day conference in the Keeneland sales pavilion brought together a

cross-section of the Thoroughbred industry, including owners, breeders,

trainers, veterinarians, horsemen, jockeys, track managers and regulators.

Among the points expressed by presenters, in order of presentation, during

the two-day summit were:

For the first time, all sessions were open to the public and the entire

summit was available on a live video stream. Nearly 200 people attended and

several hundred watched online. In addition, highlights from the summit were

tweeted steadily by numerous media representatives and others in attendance or

watching the video stream.

PowerPoint presentations from various speakers at the summit are available by

clicking

here. A video replay will be available at a later date.

This summit included updates on initiatives first identified at earlier

editions of the summit as well as recommendations for future implementation.

"We look upon the summit as a 'think tank' for this industry," said James L.

Gagliano, president and chief operating officer of The Jockey Club. "This

edition proved, beyond a doubt, that previous summits have indeed borne fruit

and that the committees formed at the first few summits are still working hard

to enhance the welfare and safety of our athletes."

The presentations and panels on Tuesday were: Surface Testing Laboratory

Update; Reformed Racing Medication Rules Update; Identification of Illegal

Riding Crops and Proper Crop Use; An Honest Look at Training (a trainer panel

with an open discussion on horsemanship and training techniques); The Importance

of Pre-Race Inspections (Inspection of horse in back walking ring and

presentation in sales pavilion); Breeders' Cup -- Health, Safety and Security;

Equine Injury Database Update; Selected Effects of Training & Racing on the

Musculoskeletal System; Corticosteroids and the Horse in Training; Trainer

Continuing Education Programs; and Safety Committees at Racetracks.

The panels on Wednesday were the Racing Commissioners Panel (Implementing

Safety Initiatives) and Totally Aftercare Panel.

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